Architect to present another new design for proposed Belle Isle apartments

There are new plans for the proposed apartment complex at 31 Venetian Way, currently Belle Isle Key Apartments, and architect Luis Revuelta will present them to Belle Isle residents and the Belle Isle Residents Association on Wednesday.

The owner of the complex plans to demolish the existing three-story buildings and build a five-story complex of apartments and a parking garage, topped with tennis courts and pool.

Revuelta and partner Barbara Pederzoli presented a version of the plans to Belle Isle residents on May 18, after a Miami Beach staff review declared the project out of scale and character with the neighborhood. At that meeting, Revuelta promised to work with University of Miami architecture Professor Jean-Francois Lejeune, dean of UM’s architecture graduate school and a Belle Plaza resident, on showing what impact the project will have on bay views on the island.

Since originally proposed, the architects have created a wider view corridor from the building to Biscayne Bay, and residents at the last meeting said it had improved, even though they still had issues with the design.

You can read a report on that meeting and the last iteration of the design here.

Resident association president Scott Diffenderfer said the plans that will be presented Wednesday are “significantly revised.” Wednesday’s meeting starts at 7 p.m. at Belle Plaza, 20 Island Ave.

The city of Miami Beach Design Review Board is scheduled to vote the design on July 6.